Holly Holm's ability to make 135 pounds is giving Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino a glimmer of hope.
A larger bantamweight, Holm has been able to cut down to the 135-pound standard, and will be required to do so again on Nov. 15 when she faces the world destroyer known as Ronda Rousey at UFC 193.
Justino desperately wants what Holm has: both the shot at Rousey, and the ability to shed enough water weight to tip the scales at 135 pounds.
"She's giving me hope," Justino told ESPN's Brett Okamoto. "She looks the same size as me, but then I asked for her weight and she said 158. I said, 'Woah, I'm 10 pounds more.' I'm the same size as her, but I think my muscle is heavier - but she gave me hope."
A massive featherweight, Justino stands as the most dangerous threat to Rousey's throne atop women's MMA, and has enlisted the help of famed nutritionist George Lockhart in hopes of booking a bout with Rousey at some point in 2016.
"She made me make a promise that if at any time my mind changes and I don't think she'll be optimal at the weight, I won't let her do it," Lockhart said. "Scientifically, I don't see it being a problem - but I told her I would."
Ideally, Justino would be able to face Rousey at a catchweight of 140 pounds (the weight she's aiming for during her next Invicta bout), but both Rousey and UFC president Dana White have been extremely vocal about keeping the potential bout at bantamweight.
"It's easy for (White) to say I don't want the fight," Justino said. "Why doesn't he say Ronda Rousey doesn't want it? Because she is their champ and so he puts words in my mouth.
"I want to KO her. I want to beat her into the floor. I will put everything inside me. Five years, I listen to her speak bull---- about me, and I'm just here in training. When we're in Octagon, I put everything out. Everything I hold here, in my heart. It will be different, because she's never fought someone like me. I know that she knows this."
